Friday, December 24, 2010

Well, the money is back home safe. PayPal said it might take until the 29th to get it back into the bank, but after all the hoopla, they were probably watching as closely as I, because the transfer has already been completed. I'd still like to know where this thing originated, though, and certainly hope it wasn't just some silly little glitch on their part.

It's the first day of a 4-day weekend, and I'm quite grateful to have it. We had our typically laid-back obligatory group luncheon at work yesterday, and approximately two hours before it started, as I was doing my best to get done with anything I didn't want biting me next Tuesday, I noticed some discomfort at the corner of my left eye, near the bridge of the nose. It felt enough like conjunctivitis for me to be worried, but other than the pain, my eye looked fine. However, after lunch it got worse in a hurry; I practically ran out the door an hour before the usual clock-out time. Got some sublime Chinese take-out (several employees brought spouses & kids along for the dinner, which meant virtually no leftovers to bring home). After dinner, I felt even worse, like the whole left side of my face was puffed up.

"Does my face look weird?" I asked Carl. That's the sort of question that generally makes him spew a drink all over himself, and it did. He assured me I was my usual perfectly beautiful self (after the choking subsided). I went to bed around 7, but woke up several times just moaning. Blowing the nose didn't help a whole lot. The only thing that helped was the reassuring presence of my kitty, who peered into my face and trilled at me every time I made a sound. The pain was, and still is, excruciating.

So as of this morning I have a diagnosis of "acute sinus infection," a prescription for amoxicillin, some OTC suda non-Fed, saline nasal spray, extra Kleenex, and time to wait this sucker out. Just hoping my face is back to normal by Sunday, since I've got somewhere to be. Even Carl couldn't lie to me this morning: My face looks like Quasimodo's back.

My Liberal Identity:

You are a Reality-Based Intellectualist, also known as the liberal elite. You are a proud member of what’s known as the reality-based community, where science, reason, and non-Jesus-based thought reign supreme.

A Brief Note

I include a neurodiversity category here because throughout my first 4 grades of school I was frequently referred to the school psychologist and, for lack of a better way to put it, treated like a freak. I had a lot of trouble paying attention and my social skills were sorely lacking. The situation got better but didn't completely clear up during adulthood. I frequently felt that "something was wrong" with me. My parents were alcoholics, and the typical secrecy about family life was also a factor.
Once I got comfortable on the Internet, I began researching on my own, first ruling out autism/ Asperger's (though that took a few years), then Fragile X (which I have never been tested for -- women show far fewer signs and I do have several of the physical markers), and finally concluded that most of my troubles had to do with attention deficit/ hyperactivity disorder. That's where I am right now. But the most important thing I've discovered is that genuine freaks are extremely rare and possibly non-existent. We all have "something wrong" with us, and the best thing we can do is adapt -- to ourselves as well as to others. That is why I include these blogs in my list.